Norman Bel Geddes

Norman Bel Geddes worked as a draughtsman in an advertising industry in Detroit and shortly afterwards he became an art director. He wrote plays, became a set designer and also designed lavish, luxurious, rich sets in New York. He was influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright with whom he had worked with too. Geddes then planned on designing architecture and product styling. He later on designed a book which showed his streamlining design and approach. 

This is a design Geddes drew/painted for a theatre set and in the picture below 

you can see how he developed it beautifully

Geddes was one of the popular designers, he has a great impact on American life. during the streamlining movement he designed cars, ships and airlines. 

In the sketches above you can see that he was thinking of something new and which never existed it looked futuristic and streamlined at the same time because of it's smooth curves and tear drop shapes both of them have. He believed in the importance of the tear drop shape, as you can see in most of his designs. 

Though I have to admit that Geddes car design reminded my of a cartoon space ship - futurama. Just to realise the this has been design years ago and a cartoon of this era comes up with something similar.  He also designed metal bedroom furnishings for Simmons. One of his most noticeable kitchen designs was the Oriole stove.

The Oriole Stove is one of his most commonly used and supplied design. In the picture below you'll see furniture Geddes made from metall for Simmons.

In my opinion they didn't look streamlined thought the dresser on the left does have more of a nice curvier shape which makes it more interesting for its age.


Thames & Hudson, T&H, 2004. design since 1900. 2nd ed. singapore: C.C Graphics.

Walter Dorwin Teague

Walter Dorwin Teague was beside Raymond Loewy and Norman bel Geddes during the streamlining movement. He was an artist and worked in an advertising industry and had his own typographic office. Dorwin was also involved in packaging and began working for the industrial design in 1927. His first and most long lasting client was Kodak. In 1928 Kodak hired Walter Dorwin Teague to create cameras with a classier, more elegant look. His first creation was Series 3 Vest Pocket Vanity Kodak.

It was a metal and embossed leather camera that came in five colours: Bluebird (deep blue), Cockatoo (green), Sea Gull (gray), Redbreast (red), and Jenny Wren (brown). He also designed a camera for women to still look their best while taking photos which he named the ‘Vanity’ Kodak Ensemble outfit.

This design included a colour-coordinated camera, lipstick holder, compact, mirror and change purse in a fitted case. His most popular Kodak cameras of the twenties and thirties were designed for the entire family. Another famous camera which he designed was the Beau Brownie. The Beau Brownie was made in two sizes and came in five colours with a modern Deco two-tone pattern on the face and box.

 Teague also designed for Ford he wasn't that much of an auto mobile fan, he didn't actually design any cars himself. He was also hired to design new Pullman coaches for the new haven rail-road.

Today’s Apple designs are inspired by Teague’s idea. They saw how he made several different colours of the same product like the camera’s he designed with Kodak that were very successful, he wanted to expand the markets appeal in particular to women. Apple produced the player which was very successful but still wanted to expand the market so they looked back in the past found Teague’s camera designs and came up with the same grand idea.

brownie camera. 2013. walter dorwin teague. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.browniecamera.nl/walter_dorwin_teague.htm. [Accessed 09 January 14].

kodak. 2013. gloriously colourful . [ONLINE] Available at: http://kodak.digitalfx.tv/#/cameras/beau-brownie. [Accessed 09 January 14].

bloomberg business week. 2008. what apple learned from kodak. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/next/archives/2008/12/what_apple_lear.html. [Accessed 09 January 14].

Fiell, C & P F, 1999. design of the 20th century. 2nd ed. china: ISBN.

The World of Tomorrow

Streamlining

Streamlining is a word which is similar to the word styling. It reflected the magic of speed hydrodynamics; the dynamics of fluid in motion, and aerodynamics; The dynamics of bodies moving relative to gases, especially the interaction of moving objects with the atmosphere and tear drop shaped designs.

It was popular in the 1930s - 1950s. Streamlining designs were characteristically of one sleek, seamless body. It suggested speed and glamour, which entered American design in the post-Depression years. It was widely applied in new forms of architecture, interior decoration and everyday household goods for the home and office. Due to the war people were depressed and the president promised progress, economic recovery and the hope of the future as the Great Depression held the world in its grip, he wanted the people to have a better, brighter, sleek, futuristic new look for New York.  Therefore he asked Raymond Lowey to help him out with “the world of tomorrow”. Other designers of streamlining were Norman Del Geddes, Henry Dreyfuss and Walter Dorwin Teague.

Raymond Loewy was the most famous designing during the streamlining years. He designed everything from coca cola bottles, logos, home ware, cars, buses, planes and even a shuttle for NASA space stations. At first he was an illustrator who worked for vogue and other fashion magazines. He used to make models out of clay which had smooth sleek forms which were then used for his final designs. His streamlining designs made transportation look more appealing and modern. It also improved performance and efficiency. Loewy didn’t allow form to be dedicated by function but he merged the two together and paid attentions to the aesthetical qualities of the product.

As you can see in the pictures above the streamlining design did not have any sharp angles it had that curvy, bubble, smooth effect/form or shape.

tasha does tulsa. 2011. merican-streamlined-design-philbrook. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.tashadoestulsa.com/2011/02/american-streamlined-design-philbrook-museum/. [Accessed 27 January 14].

Fiell, C & P F, 1999. design of the 20th century. 2nd ed. china: ISBN.

Thames & Hudson, T&H, 2004. design since 1900. 2nd ed. singapore: C.C Graphics.

Ray and Charles Eames

Ray and Charles Eames were among the most important designers of the 21st century. They were the first to design and mass produce moulded plywood furniture with fibreglass-reinforced plastic, bent metal wire and aluminium. He was an architect by training, she was a painter and sculptor, together they are considered America’s most important and influential designers. In the 40s Charles worked with Eero Saarinen, with whom he started to investigate the artistic possibilities of the new mid-20th century materials like plastic, which enabled die-press stamping of seats.

Chair Shell Experiments, designed 1941-45, moulded plywood, metal, and rubber.

 Their work came to the attention of the military in World War 2 and they were asked to design moulded plywood splints, stretchers and aeroplane parts. They continued their work in furniture design after the war. 

Lounge chair the chase 1968.

Eames Splints for military

Eames Strechers

The Eames house had modern and classic architecture; it was decorated with an eclectic and colourful mix of toys, kites and eastern wares. They also wrote books and designed museum exhibitions, made films, designed toys and etc.

The elephant toy designed my the Ray and Charles Eames is still in production till this day.

Their moulded plywood chair was called “the chair of the century” by the influential architectural critic Esther McCoy. Later on Herman Miller took over the production of this chair and still continues to do so till this day. He also changed the chair’s design but not all of it he just 'played'around with it to make it more wanted, for people to continue buying.

Eames design of the  chair

The small differences Herman Miller did to the chair design. He added a softer base for sitting and he also did other designs with tubular metal legs to give a nice new contemporary look to them.

A World of Design. 2013. the eames team. [ONLINE] Available at: http://andrewflynndesign.wordpress.com/2013/03/02/the-eames-team/. [Accessed 08 December 13].

eames office.com. 2013. charles and ray. [ONLINE] Available at: http://eamesoffice.com/charles-and-ray/. [Accessed 08 December 13].

eames designs. 2013. a A BRIEF VIDEO INTRODUCTION TO CHARLES AND RAY EAMES. [ONLINE] Available at: http://eamesdesigns.com/about/charles-and-ray/. [Accessed 08 December 13].

smart furniture. 2013. Eames Molded Plywood Chair: Design Story. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.smartfurniture.com/hermanmiller/eames_plywood_chairs/designstory.html#.. [Accessed 08 December 13].

modern kiddo. 2011. Mid Century For This Century :: Eames Elephant.. [ONLINE] Available at: http://modernkiddo.com/mid-century-for-this-century-eames-elephant/. [Accessed 08 December 13].

moon to moon. 2012. eames house. [ONLINE] Available at: http://frommoontomoon.blogspot.com/2012/03/eames-house.html. [Accessed 08 December 13].

Alvar Aalto

Alvar Aalto was a finish architect and furniture designer, his most important collaborator was his wife Aino Moriso. She died particularly in directing the Artek Company, a company which sold most of Aalto’s designs. He was one of the first expressions of Scandinavian modernism. He designed furniture and made the most out of plywood as a malleable and cheap material for seating.

He spent 5 years bending wood with his wife, this research led to his revolutionary chair designs. Laminated wood and plywood were his choice of materials, he then began to investigate veneer bonding and the limits of moulding plywood with Otto Korhonen. These experiments helped him design his innovative chairs no 41 and the cantilevered no 31

no41

no31

Aalto was one of the most famous designers in this century one of his most successful designs was the l – legged stacking stools’.

He believed that connecting vertical and horizontal elements was solving his old aged problem. Aalto’s designs were characterized as organic design because of their forms, for example his famous Savoy vase which was inspired by the fjord shorelines of his native Finland.

Savoy vase

Flower 'set' of vases

 He refused using material such as tubular metal in his furniture. His designs were very influential to the post war designers such as Ray and Charles Eames.

Aalto's influences on other designers:

Chairs designed by Eames and Saarinen

The Panton chair designed by Panton. 

Through my research I've found this chair concept which looked very organic to me because of its form/shape, curviness and smoothness. even though the design has tubular metal it still looks like it was inspired by Aalto's designs and organic style.

Thames & Hudson, T&H, 2004. design since 1900. 2nd ed. singapore: C.C Graphics.

Fiell, C & P F, 1999. design of the 20th century. 2nd ed. china: ISBN.

furniture design spotlight. 2011. hug chair. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2008/10/16/hug-armchair/. [Accessed 06 December 13].

red dot online. 2013. exhibition: alvar aalto in helsinki. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.red-dot.org/830.html. [Accessed 06 December 13].

Organic Style

Organic design has come to mean any curvilinearity or even bio morphism; a form or pattern that resembles a living organism in shape or appearance. It was developed by Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Sullivan who one was his master said 'it is really the essence of every problem that it contains and suggests the solution'. Wright wanted that Sullivan’s concept, form follows function becomes one and the same thing. By this he meant that architecture should have its own meaning but still be compared to its background – having a relationship.

The architecture should show harmony with nature with its use of materials, its form, its surroundings and colour. However in New York Organic design was different to what Lloyd wanted, its aim was to highlight furniture that were of organic nature, in other words the material and design. Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen moulded plywood chairs that were organic that it shape had curvilinearity of natural forms. Organic design helped the development of plastics and in the 80s computer controlled wood cutting and shaping also increasing the use of moulding with aluminium due to its drop in raw material price. 

Another designer Alvar Aalto was one of the greatest supporters of organic design. He introduced the improvement of the soft flowing curves of his revolutionary moulded plywood and laminated wood seat furniture. He believed that wood was ‘the form-inspiring deeply human material though rejected not using industrial materials like tubular metal. 

Here’s the difference of Wrights organic design in furniture to Eames and Saarinen’s designs like I mentioned before;

As you can see through Wright's furniture design the organic design is totally different to what Eames and Saarinen did as shown in the pictures below. He did use natural material such as wood but in his furniture curvilinear lines were not shown as in Eames and Saarinens designs. I prefer Eames and Sarrinen's designs more than Wright's due to the fact that they look more organic and "flowy" not just through the material like Wright's designed. But their use of materials in their designs looks less organic such as the tubular metal.

The chair on the right was a design made by both Eames and Saarinen. The one on the right is another chair which was made from Saarinen himself, as you can see the collaboration with Eames shows it influences on the womb chair - the one of the right.

This dining unit was designed by Saarinen himself it's called the Tulip. You can see the use of beautiful organic shapes which the tulip itself has and the smooth curviness on every edge.

 La chaise, a design made by Ray and Charles Eames, I love the flow, the smoothness and the form of this chair. It looks really organic and comfortable at the same time.

miniature chairman. 2011. Miniature Saarinen Womb chair and ottoman. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.miniaturechairman.com/saarinen-and-saarineneames-miniatures.html. [Accessed 04 December 13].

vitra design museum. 2013. la chaise . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.design-museum.de/en/collection/100-masterpieces/detailseiten/la-chaise-eames.html. [Accessed 04 December 13].

about.com. 2012. side chair by frank lloyd wright. [ONLINE] Available at: http://architecture.about.com/od/franklloydwright/ig/House-Beautiful/Frank-Lloyd-Wright-Side-Chair-.htm. [Accessed 04 December 13].

Fiell, C&P, 1999. design of the 20th century. 2nd ed. china: ISBN.

Thames and Hudson, T&H, 2004. design of the 20th century. 2nd ed. singapore : c.s. graphics.

The International Style

The international style in architecture developed in the 1920s they used modern materials such as; steel, glass, and reinforced concrete, more characteristics were rectilinear forms, open interior spaces, light and no ornaments . It was invented in 1931 by Alfred H. Barr Jr., for the title of a catalogue, International Style: Architecture since 1922. Barr identified a universal style that transcended national borders - the like of which have not been seen in Western art and architecture since the Middle ages, when the so called International Gothic style had flourished across Europe.

International style belonged to the work of Modern Movement architects and designers who joined function and technology with a geometry form to produce a pared-down modern aesthetic. It refers to works that belong to Le Corbusier and his followers though the greatest designers of that time were Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe and Walter Gropius. After the 1920 and 30s some designers such as Eero Saarinen and Charles Eames sought to personalise the style by using sculptural form and the contrasting of geometric and organic shapes, while Kenzo Tange and others took a valid conclusion in the creation of Brutalism; exposing rough-cast concrete and rigid stiff geometry.

One of the most famous examples of the International Style is the United Nations Secretariat building, originally designed by an international team of architects including Le Corbusier, Oscar Niemeyer, and Wallace Harrison.

Villa Savoye is house designed from Le Corbusier and it was one of the famouse houses in the modern movement.Its located in a suburb near Paris, the house is as beautiful and functional as a machine. IT has no historical ornament, it is pure with colour,  openness and light.

Another International style house designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, The Farnsworth House was constructed and designed between 1945 and 51. As you can see there's a lot of symetry and nautraly light. the materials used to build this house are metal and glass. No historical ornament and very pure with the white.

About.com. 2013. architecture. [ONLINE] Available at: http://architecture.about.com/od/greatarchitects/p/lecorbusier.htm. [Accessed 02 December 13].
About.com. 2013. international style. [ONLINE] Available at: http://architecture.about.com/od/20thcenturytrends/ig/Modern-Architecture/International-Style.htm. [Accessed 02 December 13].
merriam-webster. 2013. international style. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/international%20style. [Accessed 02 December 13].
bc.edu. 2011. LeCorbusier -- Villa Savoye. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/cas/fnart/Corbu.html. [Accessed 02 December 13].